-Joe Sanchez, D4 Board Member and player, reporting
DIVISION FOUR REPORT (March 31, 2013)
TOURNAMENT NEWS:
FOUR UPSETS HIGHLIGHT FIRST ROUND
Half of the first round games played in the winter ’14 tournament were won by teams with worse records than their opponents. The biggest upset came when the last-place Bucks, winners of only three games during the season, took an 8-inning decision over the #9 Timberwolves.
The other unexpected results were: #22 Magic over the #11 Bobcats, 8-7; the #20 Thunder over the #13 Sixers, 19-7; and the #17 Heat over the #16 Cavaliers, 20-10.
In the four games that held to form, the #10 Pacers mercied the #23 Mavericks, 17-1; the #13 Lakers got by the #21 Jazz, 19-18; the #14 Wizards doubled up the #19 Celtics, 16-8; and the #15 Knicks beat the #18 Grizzlies.
#24 BUCKS 13, #9 Timberwolves (8 innings)
The Bucks broke a 9-9 tie with four runs in the top of the eighth and then held on as the T-Wolves brought the winning run to the plate before the game ended.
The Bucks nearly won the game in regulation when they took a 9-7 lead into the bottom of the seventh. The T-Wolves scored twice and again left a runner in scoring position, sending the game into overtime.
The winners’ offense was led by Jerry Cavanagh (3-for-4, double, home run and four RBI), John Basso (four hits, including a double) and Al Jasinski (three singles). The Bucks’ defense also turned two double plays.
The T-Wolves got three-hit games from lead-off batter Ed Kenney, Tom McHugh, and Jim Furtado. Jerry Hudson and McHugh drove in two runs apiece.
#22 Magic 8, #11 Bobcats 7
In another close game, the Magic shut out the Bobcats over the last four innings to claim the upset win. With the game tied 7-7, Tom Oberle led off the sixth inning with a triple and scored on pitcher Ed Humphries’ double. Meanwhile, Humphries was limiting the last 15 Bobcat hitters to three harmless singles. For the Bobcats, Dave Bigelow also had an effective pitching game: he checked the Magic on one run for the last four innings.
With three hits, Humphries drove in five of the eight Magic runs. Oberle, Nom Poulin and Ken Claus all had two hits. Only Bigelow, Bill Welker, Lou Van Burger and Jim Gioia had two hits for the Bobcats.
#20 Thunder 19, Sixers 7
After jumping to an 11-4 lead, the Thunder pulled away from the Sixers for a comfortable win. The Thunder lived up to their name by hammering five home runs and four doubles in a 24-hit attack.
Ted Rowland (3-for-4 with two home runs), Bill Reed (3-for-4 with two doubles and a homer) and Ed John (3-for-4 with a double) led the attack. The other home runs came from Jim Donaldson, Earl Hearst and Jack Schmidel.
Rich Brend had a three-run homer for the Sixers; he, Tom Thestrup and Jerry Saltness were the only Sixers with two hits.
#17 Heat 20, #16 Cavaliers 10
Down at one point 8-1, the Heat scored 12 times in the last two innings to outlast the Cavaliers. The last 17 batters who faced winning pitcher Jerry Niedzwiecki could only get three hits.
Clean-up hitter Don Miller had two doubles and a three-run homer before the Cavs decided to walk him twice. But Miller was not the only one hitting for the Heat: Reed Lefebvre had three hits and four RBI, and Manager Bob Durham, Rod Rickabaugh, Bob Lyons and Niedzwiecki all contributed three hits.
The Cavalier bats were relatively quiet (15 hits) as Lee Manchinelli, David Knott, Jerry Wood, Manager Mike Thurik, Jay Lester and Frank Porcelli were the only ones with two hits. Knott’s hits were a triple and a home run as he drove in four runs.
#10 Pacers 17, #23 Mavericks1
The Pacers ended the Mavericks’ season with a convincing rout. Scoring every inning and allowing the Mavs just 12 hits (all singles), the Pacers stopped the game in the bottom of the fifth. They were allowed to score an extra run due to confusion about the mercy rule. By the time it was confirmed that the rule does apply during the tournament, the Pacers had exceeded the run limit. The game should have ended at 16-1.
Jim Carr was the hitting star for the winners as he used two singles and a double to score five runs. Dan Davis and Dale Anderson also had three hits. For the Mavericks, Denny Gruszecki and Bob Pinsonneault were the only players with two hits.
#13 Lakers 19, #21 Jazz 18
In the most dramatic finish of the day, the Lakers came away with a walk-off victory on Greg Auclair’s single in the bottom of the seventh.
The Jazz were down to their last out in the top of the inning when Wayne Vance clobbered a two-run homer to give the team an 18-17 lead. The Lakers wasted no time as Pete Zesinger led off with a single and moved to third on Bob DelVecchio’s double. With first base open and the winning run on second, Gene McConville issued an intentional walk to Dave Albert. The strategy backfired when Kevin Mukri singled in the tying run and Auclair finished the job.
Del Vecchio had four hits (two doubles) as did Auclair and winning pitcher Jack Teal. Albert (home run and four RBI), Zesinger, John Arruda and sub Bruce Nelson came up with three hits.
The Jazz were led by Vance, Dale Loy and Mick Larson (all with three hits).
#14 Wizards 16, #19 Celtics 8
Thanks to Dave Morrill’s two home runs (one was a grand slam) and his six RBI, the Wizards eased past the Celtics.
Morrill was the only Wizard with three hits, but there were eight others with two each. Facing an assortment of defensive shifts, Dave Bronte was four-for-four. Bill Oar and Tony Santangelo had three hits each. Injured while running to first base, Tom Murphy had to leave the game for the Celtics.
#15 Knicks 13, #18 Grizzlies
The Knicks had to come back three times to finally outlast the Grizzlies. Down 11-8 in the bottom of the 6th, four singles, a sacrifice fly and a two-run triple by Paul Crocker generated four runs and a 13-11 advantage. The Grizzlies threatened with two runners on base in the seventh, but could not score.
Len Gray and Dave Riordan had four hits for the winners while Crocker and winning pitcher Dave Snell added three. Snell helped his own cause with a home run and five RBI.
Rick Hemmer and sub Bob Lyons had three hits for the Grizzlies. Hemmer and another sub Tom McHugh had three-run home runs.
Here are the matchups for Round Two:
9:00 #17 Heat at #1 Raptors
#15 Knicks at #2 Kings
#20 Thunder at #4 Warriors
#14 Wizards at #3 Pistons
10:30
#24 Bucks at #8 Suns
#12 Lakers at #5 Bulls
#10 Pacers at #7 Rockets
#22 Magic at #6 Hawks
